Phylogenetic systematics of Yphthimoides Forster, 1964 and related taxa, with notes on the biogeographical history of Yphthimoides species

Species losses are increasing and may have an impact on our understanding of patterns of evolutionary pathways and phylogenetic relationships among the groups being lost. The knowledge of such patterns can contribute to preventing future losses by identifying which lineages have higher or lower diversification rates, thus informing conservation strategies. Recent years have seen a significant growth in studies of butterfly systematics, allowing a better understanding of evolutionary relationships among most groups and revealing significant taxonomic chaos in several groups. One of the latter groups is the nymphalid subtribe Euptychiina (Satyrinae), which has been shown to include a number of non-monophyletic genera based on recent molecular phylogenetic analyses. Among others, these genera include Yphthimoides, which is widespread throughout the Neotropical region but particularly diverse in the southeastern Neotropics, and a pair of related genera, Pharneuptychia Forster, 1964 and Moneuptychia Forster, 1964. Using molecular data, this study scope and aims were to provide a phylogenetic hypothesis that corroborates Yphthimoides as presently conceived being non-monophyletic, a result reinforced by a comparative study of the male genitalic morphology. Our results also show that Pharneuptychia and Mon-euptychia, plus a species misplaced elsewhere in the Euptychiina, Euptychoides castrensis (Schaus, 1902), form a well supported clade, and that the latter 'species' is a complex of cryptic species. We therefore propose a number of taxonomic rearrangements in the present work to resolve these issues: Yphthimoides eriphule (A. Butler, 1867) will be moved to a new genus; Y. affinis (A. Butler, 1867), Y. maepius (Godart, [1824]), Y. mimula (Hayward, 1954), Y. neomaenas (Hayward, 1967) and Y. mythra (Weymer, 1911) are being transferred to Malaveria Viloria & Benmesbah, 2021; Pharneuptychia innocentia (Godart, [1824]) will be moved to another genus to be described; and Euptychoides castrensis, Pharneuptychia romanina (Bryk, 1953) and Yphthimoides viviana (Romieux, 1927) are being moved to Moneuptychia. The dating of divergences points to a split between the ancestral lineage of Yphthimoides and its sister group, Carminda Ebert and Dias, in Dias 1998, during the last half of the Miocene, around 11.86 Mya, and to the diversification of the Pharneuptychia during the same time 11.35 (& PLUSMN;3.52) Mya. Biogeographic analysis showed that the most recent common ancestor of Yphthimoides started to diversify either in the the Brazilian Cerrado savannas or in a combined area of Cerrado and South Atlantic Forest, with a possible change in the ancestral habitat of Carminda. Furthermore, ancestral character mapping favors a savanna origin hypothesis over a forest origin hypothesis.

Automated summary

Increasing species losses may impact our understanding of evolutionary patterns and phylogenetic relationships. Studies of butterfly systematics have revealed taxonomic chaos in the nymphalid subtribe Euptychiina. This research provides a phylogenetic hypothesis supporting the non-monophyly of Yphthimoides and proposes taxonomic rearrangements to resolve the issue.